FNPS Plant Database

Illicium floridanum

Florida anise
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

Florida anise

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Illicium floridanum

Family:

Illiciaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

shrub

Size:

15 ft tall by 8 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

red

Fruit Color:

brown

Phenology:

Evergreen. Blooms in spring. Fruits ripen in fall.

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Interesting Foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Screen or specimen plant in shady wet settings.

Considerations:

Availability:

Quality Nurseries, Native Nurseries

Propagation:

Light:

Shade

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â– â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡â–¡

Usually moist, occasional inundation -to- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam

Soil pH:

Acidic to neutral

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

Don't know your zone? Click here to search by zip code.

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators

Pollinated by a variety of insects, especially native flies and beetles.

Native Habitats:

Slope forest, floodplain forest, hydric hammocks, seep stream (banks), steepheads.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

The distribution mimics the distribution of steepheads, a stream/valley system that originates in a very steep-headed ravine where the water seeps out of the ground to form a stream, and the headwall gradually moves uphill due to the water exiting the ground undermining it.  

Citations:

Thien, L. B., D. A. White and L. Y. Yatsu. (1983). "The reproductive biology of a relict Illicium floridanum Ellis." American Journal of Botany 70.5 (1983): 719-727.
( https://www.jstor.org/stable/2443126 ). Accessed 2026.


Haehle, Robert G. and Joan Brookwell. (1999). Native Florida Plants. Gulf Publishing Company. Houston, TX.


Nelson, Gil. (2003). Florida's Best Landscape Plants: 200 Readily Available Species for Homeowners and Professionals. University Press of Florida, Gainesville.


Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

Request an update